Fledged!

Well, that didn't take long from the time I'd realized the chicks had hatched!  When I first got home, I looked quickly at the nest (trying not to stress them out) and thought this was an adult feeding the chicks.  I got inside, spoke to Thomas, and realized that this was one of the babies, trying to work up the courage to leave the nest.

He got home before me, and had seen two of the babies hopping around the lawn.  One even jumped up about two feet to perch on the side of a tree in our yard.  The third is the one pictured above.

Presumably one of the parents, keeping an eye on things:

So cute!  When I checked a few hours later, before heading upstairs, this last chick was still standing there, thinking about fledging.  That means the chick was standing there for at least 4 hours!

This morning, the nest was empty.  I'd imagine all the birds should be relatively close, but I couldn't see them this morning.  They're probably hiding in the bushes in my neighbor's yard.  I'm hoping to see them healthy and hopping around this weekend.